The team has only cached in 9 states, Maine to Florida. We have less than 200 finds, yet we know a good cache when we see one. We rececntly took a "work related" trip to a neighboring state to the south. It begins with R. I'm trying to be nice. Suffice to say, the experience left me with, " these had to be just for the numbers". I now know why we say, " Maine, the way caching should be". Thanks to ALL who have hid and maintained the best caches we have done. Anyone travelling to Maine, will certainly leave this state with some great stories and an appreciation for our geocaching. Yes we too have a few micros. Just try to find them. :D :D

WhereRWe?

08-14-2005, 11:20 AM

The team has only cached in 9 states, Maine to Florida. We have less than 200 finds, yet we know a good cache when we see one. We rececntly took a "work related" trip to a neighboring state to the south. It begins with R. I'm trying to be nice. Suffice to say, the experience left me with, " these had to be just for the numbers". I now know why we say, " Maine, the way caching should be". Thanks to ALL who have hid and maintained the best caches we have done. Anyone travelling to Maine, will certainly leave this state with some great stories and an appreciation for our geocaching. Yes we too have a few micros. Just try to find them. :D :D

I'm well known for my rabid dislike of micros, but I have to say in reflection that the dreaded film canister is probably a good sign of a lousy cache. Micros certainly have a place, and it seems in my experience that any micro that IS NOT a film can is usually pretty good.

TwoMaineiacs

08-14-2005, 02:57 PM

Wait until you see the first stage of Forest Nymph's new cache in Bowdoinham. It is a biggish micro and you will be amazed at the time and creativity;). So far most of the micros we have seen have been parts of multi caches with just coordinates or clues to the next phase. Cannot image a place where most of your caches are key boxes on lamp posts. I think we would lose interest pretty fast.

Anne

attroll

08-15-2005, 12:58 AM

The team has only cached in 9 states, Maine to Florida. We have less than 200 finds, yet we know a good cache when we see one. We rececntly took a "work related" trip to a neighboring state to the south. It begins with R. I'm trying to be nice. Suffice to say, the experience left me with, " these had to be just for the numbers". I now know why we say, " Maine, the way caching should be". Thanks to ALL who have hid and maintained the best caches we have done. Anyone travelling to Maine, will certainly leave this state with some great stories and an appreciation for our geocaching. Yes we too have a few micros. Just try to find them. :D :D
I hate to say this. But it is only a matter of time before we start seeing caches like that in the state of Maine. In fact there are a few now that were place by some out of staters that are in it for the number (I will not say an names). But the few that we see are far out numbered by the good ones. I wish we could set some rules for how caches are placed in Maine. But that can not happen. If we did then only the ones that wanted to go by the rules we set would and we would have no control over the others.

parmachenee

08-15-2005, 08:08 AM

We just returned from Colorado and found many good, interesting caches. But there were also a couple of the "under the light post" micro caches too. They are becoming more frequent everywhere unfortunately. I also just returned from a trip to Aroostook County and found that micros and regular caches are about 50/50...at least the caches we did. There were many we didn't get to that looked to be regular caches. None of the micros were film canisters and some were in very challenging locations. I just didn't expect to see so many in such a rural area. I can say that because I'm from P.I. :)

Slate

08-15-2005, 02:28 PM

I wish we could set some rules for how caches are placed in Maine. But that can not happen.
I totally agree with that. Although gpsfun (http://www.geocaching.com/profile/?guid=5a549092-8da0-42f5-a418-be64d4258026) seems to do a good job approving caches, it would be nice if there was some local input on what caches are being approved. It would be great it there were a way for Maine geocachers to work with gpsfun on the approval process, maybe including a local geocacher visit site prior to approval. it just doesn't make a lot of sense to me to have someone from Georgia, who is probably unfamiliar with the area, making the final decisions.

WhereRWe?

08-15-2005, 03:30 PM

I totally agree with that. Although [font=Verdana][size=2]gpsfun (http://www.geocaching.com/profile/?guid=5a549092-8da0-42f5-a418-be64d4258026) seems to do a good job approving caches, it would be nice if there was some local input on what caches are being approved. It would be great it there were a way for Maine geocachers to work with gpsfun on the approval process, maybe including a local geocacher visit site prior to approval. it just doesn't make a lot of sense to me to have someone from Georgia, who is probably unfamiliar with the area, making the final decisions.

Actually, GPSFun is from New England, and he visited us at the last event.

He seems to know what he's doing - basing his decisions on the geocaching.com rules and not on local preferences. Makes it fair... :D :D

Haffy

08-15-2005, 03:38 PM

I think GPSFun is very fair and after talking with him at the last event he seems to be very knowlegeable and follows the GC.com guidelines to a T. In fact on a couple of occasions and one just recently I emailed him about my concern on a cache that was questionable as to it being on private property and he immediately placed it on the disable list to get clarification from the owners as to it's location. It is still disabled so I assume the owners did not persue it any further. This is one instance where geocaching can give others the wrong impression and will make it harder in the future to place caches.

Trezurs*-R-*Fun

08-15-2005, 09:10 PM

....maybe including a local geocacher visit site prior to approval

I think having GPSFUN who is familiar with Maine and yet lives "away" is about the most objective way to have our caches approved. If we start requiring a visual inspection, we would lose that.

Personally I very much approve of the way GC.com handles the approval process.

tat

08-15-2005, 09:54 PM

GPSFUN is applying the rules set by GC.com. The rules are very basic and do little to prevent "lame" caches.

I'm just glad there are dull places for dull people to live, so that they don't have to live here!

I just came back from Montana and Wyoming. I only got a few caches in a week, but the ones I did find were all interesting places that I'd love to go back to.

Slate

08-16-2005, 08:25 AM

Thanks for the clarification about GPSFUN. I don't know where I got the idea that he was from down south. It is much more reassuring that others here have met him and that he is from New England and at least familiar with Maine. I guess now that I am actively caching again I need to get to one of the events to meet some of my fellow Maine cachers.

team teebow

08-16-2005, 08:36 AM

I had the same thoughts when gpsfun started to approve my caches, that he was from down south somewhere. But I have had many email conservations with him and he was VERY polite and respectable to my questions / needs.

I could not make it to the last event where he visited but maybe in the future GPSFUN can make it to another one and I can catch up with him there.

I too have great respect for him and I'm glad he's our area approver!!! :):):):)

Team Teebow

hoys

08-16-2005, 09:01 AM

I've recently moved back to Maine, but when I moved out ten years ago, GeoCaching did not exist, so I'm a complete newbie to caching in Maine.

In Kentucky, we had a lot of film-canister micros, and a lot of people liked them. Of course, when you get into Lexington and other relatively large cities, it's really tough to get good containers, and counterproductive since they'll tend to get stolen frequently, so low replacement effort and cost are a must.

In Tennesee (where I never cached, but friends of mine did), pillboxes were the most popular container, and the area was heavy with 1/1 micros, and numbers ruled.

A lot of areas provide groups of easy caches for those that take numbers seriously, and believe me there are a good number of people who want nothing more than the numbers.

That's the really cool, and sometimes frustrating, part about GeoCaching. Everyone wants something different out of it.

I don't think Maine really has the urban areas, except maybe in a few of the larger cities, for a concentrated "film can micro" barrage like you'll find in other states. If film cans are used here, I suspect it would be in areas where the cache is less important than the place the cache leads you to.

TwoMaineiacs

08-16-2005, 06:32 PM

We're blessed with our Maine caches. When we started geocaching we didn't really know what to expect. Today met every expectation we might have ever had or hoped for. Today proved why caching in Maine is so special. Three great caches, perfect weather, very special scenery and a lunch that was gourmet quality.

"Cache on the Rocks" GC7BBB at the end of Pemaquid Point south of Damariscotta had views out over granite ledges, lobster boats working right in front of you, ripe raspberries, warm sun and ospreys overhead. Best place to park for this one is at N43 50.109 W69 30.830. Road to the cache is lined with old time Maine camps with the occasional McMansion. Middle of a blizzard these are the scenes that will stay in your mind and make you stay in the state.

"Born on the Fourth of July" GCGD6X is at a State of Maine Historic site at Colonial Pemaquid. We paid the $2 a head fee to get into Fort William Henry and then the museum but you would not have to pay the fee to get to the cache. The State took a lot of time and effort to put up interesting artifacts from archeological digs. A woman state park ranger talked on occupation of the fort and why it never survived for long - one example was the water supply was outside the fort! Views here were great and the cache was well hidden and had nice contents.

Lunch??? We'd packed sandwiches but got tempted by "The Contented Sole" on the grounds of Fort William Henry and beside the Pemaquid Harbor pier. Oh my - there went the eating plan. Bisque filled with lobster, crab and shrimp in a thick cream base with butter. Fried shrimp with not a touch of grease. Salad with apples, bacon, grapes and blue cheese. We shared the meal but probably consumed enough calories for four. Too stuffed for the raspberry pie thank heaven. A bit pricey but well well worth the money. We asked what Inn was across the harbor as it was a new, Maine shingle style, huge building with perfectly landscaped grounds. Waitress laughed and said it was the new summer home of the CEO for Duke Power Co. <G> Had to be 10-12,000 sf.

We waddled on to the next cache and finally got a bit of a walk to burn a few calories. "Shell Game" GCG6Y2 was at the Whaleback Shell Midden state historic site. Good informational plaques and the site really made you think about early American Indians and how they survived. Years of summering on the river, eating oysters and throwing the shells in a pile - all 30 feet high at one time.

I doubt we would ever have walked to these sites if not for geocaching. We'll skip the phone pole micros and thank all the geocachers who place such interesting caches in Maine.

Anne and Joe

WhereRWe?

08-16-2005, 06:49 PM

I guess now that I am actively caching again I need to get to one of the events to meet some of my fellow Maine cachers.

This Saturday. Deer Isle. There are at least 15 caches on the island, so you can have a good experience, meet a lot of cachers, and have a lot of fun.

Slate

08-17-2005, 01:11 PM

I love to kayak and I would have liked to attend on Saturday, but unfortunately I have other commitments that day. In September, I will miss The Last Cache Bashe of Summer too, because I will be out in California that weekend, hopefully finding out what caching out in Southern CA is really like. So far it doesn't look too promising, there are 20 caches within a mile of our hotel and they are nearly all micos or virtuals. Hopefully, I will be pleasantly surprised when we get there, but it will probably be worth my time to look for some interesting ones before we head out there.

hoys

08-17-2005, 01:16 PM

This Saturday. Deer Isle. There are at least 15 caches on the island, so you can have a good experience, meet a lot of cachers, and have a lot of fun.
Dang I wish I could make that. Unfortunately, I'm flying out Sunday for Kentucky for a weeklong trip. After our big move just a couple of weeks ago, convincing my wife to take a 3+ hour drive with our daughter just isn't in the cards.

My mother lives up in Brooklin, not far from Deer Isle, and that would have been a perfect trip if work hadn't gotten in the way.

Oh, well, maybe the September one, and if not maybe we'll put one together ourselves in Topsham. Octoberfest, anyone? ;)

Team2hunt

08-17-2005, 04:59 PM

Oh, well, maybe the September one, and if not maybe we'll put one together ourselves in Topsham. Octoberfest, anyone? ;)
Octoberfest? Anyone will tell you, that a responsible Maine geocacher would never Octoberfest. I on the other hand, have never been responsible. ;) I may have to wake up " the weasel " , count me in. Mmmmmmmm, Octoberfest.

WhereRWe?

08-17-2005, 06:01 PM

Octoberfest? Anyone will tell you, that a responsible Maine geocacher would never Octoberfest. I on the other hand, have never been responsible. ;) I may have to wake up " the weasel " , count me in. Mmmmmmmm, Octoberfest.

Ah, Octoberfest! We have been to the REAL Octoberfest. An experience we'll never forget.

If someone holds an Octoberfest event, PLEASE make sure that it is within walking distance to a good motel... :eek: :eek:

attroll

08-18-2005, 12:32 AM

I am in for an Octoberfest. Lets start planning one now. We can get more people down this way if we start planning now. There are a lot more geocachers in the southern part of Maine then there are in the Bangor area. We just need to get them to come out an play.

hoys

08-18-2005, 07:55 AM

RE: Octoberfest - OK. I'm thinking of maybe October 29, so we can make it a semi-Halloween celebration as well? I'll be travelling the week ending in the 21st, so that weekend is out.

I have lots of parking at my place, which is in Topsham on the Foreside Road, set off in the woods a bit. I also have a good-sized garage we could use to hold it in inclement weather. And a semi-finished basement with a wood floor in case anyone wants to bring a sleeping bag and, err, sleep off any potential Octoberfesting or just rest up for the voyage home.

If anyone knows of a better location we can get in the area, though, I'm open.

WhereRWe?

08-18-2005, 08:05 AM

RE: Octoberfest - OK.

If anyone knows of a better location we can get in the area, though, I'm open.

Is there anyplace in Maine that actually holds an Octoberfest?

hoys

08-18-2005, 08:11 AM

Is there anyplace in Maine that actually holds an Octoberfest?
Looks like Bangor holds one every year, and one in Southwest Harbor but that appears to be tied to a $110/night hotel.

TwoMaineiacs

08-18-2005, 02:07 PM

a 'Fest locally would be fun! We'd be there. Hoys - you are just about sitting on a cache depending on where on Foreside Road you are.

Hmmmm....guess I'm just unrespectable enough to go to Octoberfest...!!!! :cool:

Northwoods Explorer

08-21-2005, 04:04 PM

It does not matter where you go you can find lame ones. I generally hate micros in busy placed, it just does not seem right, well less face it I hate them altogether. But I have done a couple of great ones. In Nashville there is a park, thats what they call it, that is 50 feet by 100 feet and has only a bench with the rest grass. It had a micro that took us almost an hour to find because we had never done a city micro like that one. A police office stopped and asked if we were looking for a cache and told us he enjoyed watching people look for it. It was a metal cylinder about and inch long in a pvc pipe designed to look like part of the watering system. The way we found it was the letters on the cap were geocaching.com. We aslo did some in the rain Sat in western central New Brunswick, we managed to do 12 which for us is a record for one day. Only two were lame and those two were very easy finds with no redeming value in my opinion. No micros because these were all rural but took us to some very nice trails and parks. It included two wilderess areas and four different lakes. Even found a place we want to go back to in the fall to go hiking. We look at the names of those who place them and there are some people we just don't waste our time with while other we mark theirs to do in the future.

robt

08-21-2005, 08:54 PM

I would go to an October Fest esspecially if it right in my backyard. :) but then I have never been accused of beeing proper. :)

noreasta

08-22-2005, 10:15 PM

A cache is a cache...

That is why they have discriptions as to what they are, this allows a cacher a decision wether he/she wants to hunt for it......

I say if people do not like certian caches then they should not go look for them.

Personally, i enjoy the hunt no matter what it may be as long as it has taken me to a new spot..

I must admit I do not have a canoe to attempt to get to these island caches but hey , who am my so say wether they are good or bad caches.